The basic problem of achieving an absorbent article which closely contacts the body surface around the liquid discharge area of wearers of such articles has been addressed by various designs heretoforth. However, the designs and features suggested in this respect can be further improved for comfort and convenience in respect to the widely varying surface topography of different wearers. This is underlined by the lack of widely available products having features which raise the body facing surface towards the wearer.
WO-9207535 discloses topsheet raising devices in the form of resilient longitudinal spacing structures. The spacing structure is activated by side pressure from the thighs of the wearer. WO-9014063 discloses a hose-like absorption body which also spaces the topsheet away from the absorbent core thereby producing a void space for additional absorption capacity in an absorbent product. U.S. Pat. No. 4,846,824 discloses a labia-pad which is anatomically conformed by folding and confining the product into a raised shape. None of these three prior art disclosures refers to hermetically enclosed gas bubbles to provide the desired shaping function.
GB-1,462,467 discloses an absorbent pad construction designed for heavy-load bearing bed pads. GB-1,575,363 discloses bed pads or sanitary dressings having a backsheet of particular resiliency. U.S. Pat. No. 4,723,953 also discloses a particularly soft bed pad construction showing good resiliency. These three documents all refer to a bubble pack type of construction of the impermeable backsheet in order to provide resiliency for the whole of the absorbent article. No particular area in the topsheet is raised to register with any part of the human body according to these disclosures. U.S. Pat. No. 3,881,491 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,921,232 both relate to activatable gas bubbles designed to provide resiliency and form the absorbent article surface into such a shape that it provides for particular benefits in acquiring bodily exudates. Both documents particularly relate to the separation of feces by providing pockets within the body-facing surface of the absorbent article. These designs have the drawback that they need an activation liquid usually urine. On top of that, the uncertainty in gas amount created raises questions of consistency of design and function.
It is therefore an objective of the present invention to provide an absorbent article with a gas bubble which is yielding so as to comfortably conform the body-facing surface of the article to the individual topography of the wearer particularly in the area of liquid discharge.